New member from Downingtown, PA

[Nick Runske]

Name and location are a giveaway given my username and the title of the thread... I've been postponing joining this forum for almost 3 years now and figured today was the day.  I'm a property insurance adjuster by trade with a background in construction (mostly framing, but have experience with flooring, windows, drywall, trim, tile, electrical, plumbing, etc.).

My father, who has been in the construction industry for 40 years and owns his own company, and I recently completed and sold our first flip.  We purchased the property in summer of 2017 and had to borrow some of the money in the first place just to complete the initial transaction.  Lots of people kept telling us, "you need to make these flips happen quick!  Carpet and paint!"  That sounds great if you can afford a carpet and paint flip or can afford a larger scale flip out of the gate.  That wasn't us.  We both have full time jobs and had to save, and we worked on the property when we could.  Purchase price was $40k and we ended up with somewhere around $120k into it, selling it for $200k in March 2020.  This was the property to get us started.  The only thing still original is some of the framing, the exterior stucco, the electric panel, the furnace, and the plaster walls and ceiling in the living room.  Literally everything else was brand new.  We added a bathroom to the second story, new roof, new wiring, new duct work, all new plumbing, re-framed the second story, etc.

I have before and after photos of the flip and can link to the sold listing if anyone is interested in looking (not sure if that's OK or not).  Now that the Coronavirus restrictions are easing up, we're looking to start another one shortly, eventually moving our way into buying and holding both residential and commercial property for passive income while continuing to flip projects that seem like decent candidates for it.

I've listened to a number of the BP podcasts and have read some of the books that have been recommended on the podcasts as well, so I've done some of my homework before joining, but still have a lot to learn, and hopefully will be able to contribute and share what I know and what I've learned along the way.  I'm also looking forward to connecting with other locals in the southeastern Pennsylvania area.

[Brandon Ribeiro]

@Nick Runske Congrats on the flip! Sometimes you need to take things one step at a time- all the guests on the podcast are experienced investors, so when they say they do 2,3,4,5 or more flips a month, its because that's their main focus. Props to you and your dad for doing it aside from your full time jobs.